2016 Oscar Nominee Reactions

Sylvester Stallone

Supporting Actor: “Creed”

“It feels like it’s come full circle. It’s great that this character that has carried me along all these years is getting respect. It’s amazing that another generation is seeing this and another generation is directing the film. Ryan Coogler is just undiluted brilliance. It was quite a revelation on how enthusiastic a fella who wasn’t even born until ‘Rocky IV’ could be.”

Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Leonardo DiCaprio

Best Actor: “The Revenant”

“One of the more exciting points was pushing the narrative forward without using so many words,“ DiCaprio said. “This whole filmmaking process was unique with all actors involved but it presents a challenge to you as an actor if you can sustain a performance without saying so much. Alejandro (Inarritu) did such wonderful of capturing the poetry of the film and I was just excited to take on such an enormous challenge. So many things I did in this film were first-time experiences for me as an actor. I just hope it means we are able to make more films like this in the future.”

Courtesy of 20th Century Fox

Alicia Vikander

Supporting Actress: “The Danish Girl”

“It’s excellent,” Vikander said. “I was just up to get ready to leave for a shoot and trying to put on my shoes when I got the call.”

Courtesy of Universal

Jennifer Jason Leigh

Best Supporting Actress: “The Hateful Eight”

“This was truly an ensemble. It was like play, we were all on set every day for five months together and we got incredibly close,” Leigh said. “Quentin (Tarantino) doesn’t allow phones on the set, so people talk, hangout, and chat.

Courtesy of The Weinstein Co.

George Miller

Best Picture, Director: “Mad Max: Fury Road”

“If you would have told me this a month ago I would have said it was a very, very low possibility,” Miller said. “It’s fantastic so many of us are being invited to the party.”

Courtesy of Warner Bros

Mark Rylance

Supporting Actor: “Bridge of Spies”

“Steven is so enjoyable to work with as well as the crew he brings along — so many are veterans of Steven’s films,” Rylance said. “It was nerve-wracking to jump in because Steven demands you to turn it up from the moment you step on set. So that first day was a little nerve-wracking.”

Courtesy of Disney

Tom McCarthy

Director: “Spotlight”

“One of the first things I said to my producers two years ago was that we were dead after moving studios. The Open Road guys deserve so much credit for this because it is not an easy movie to sell and they sold it well,” McCarthy said. “All this critical attention and the box office has been great. It’s good for movies because it’s the (kind of) movies I want to see and these films are getting harder and harder to make.”

Courtesy of Open Road

Mary Parent

Best Picture: “The Revenant”

“On one hand, it was the easiest of movies because you saw creatively these one-of-a-kind talents unfolding and see something special,” Parent said. “On the other hand there were definitely moments of ‘Where are we going to shoot?’ or ‘How are we going to finish’ but at all times we were always inspired to go on and finish this film.”

Courtesy of 20th Century Fox/Rex Shutterstock

Steve Golin

Best Picture: “The Revenant,” “Spotlight”

“It’s been completely gratifying that we got (‘Spotlight’) made. It’s just a risk because of the subject matter. I have been so happy with how Open Road got this film the attention it deserves,” Golin said. “With ‘Revenant,’ Alejandro (Inarritu) is a brilliant filmmaker and all of the cast and crew were great. You know when you make a DiCaprio movie, it’s going to get some attention. I love both films, but obviously only one can win. I am proud of both films so while only one can win, both films have already won for both getting nominated.”

Courtesy of 20th Century Fox/Open Road/Rex Shutterstock

Adam McKay

Director: “The Big Short”

“I look at the Christian Bale nomination as acknowledging the whole cast along with the Best Picture nomination so that was real nice,” McKay said. “I still feel the film has a whole other breadth to it as we are still doing tours. Now you are seeing politicians talking about it so that is very promising so far.”

Courtesy of Paramount/Rex Shutterstock

Pete Docter

Animated Feature: “Inside Out”

“You start out and have such a huge battle in front of you given that the human mind is the most complicated thing in the universe,” Docter said. “To put that into an 80-minute project — that was a little tricky. It was a ride there with Fear in my brain while waiting for the nomination but in the end I think Joy won out.”

Courtesy of Disney/Rex Shutterstock

Matthew Heineman

Best Documentary Feature: “Cartel Land”

“What is happening in Mexico is kind of glorified in movies and TV shows. I really wanted to put a human face to the violence and to show the effects of this cartel violence on everyday people,” Heineman said.

Courtesy of The Orchard

Roger Deakins

Cinematography: “Sicario”

“Sometimes you hit it off with people. Denis (Villeneuve) and I really complement each other, I think,” Deakins said. The nomination “means I’m still doing my job and enjoying what I do and life is good.”

Courtesy of Lionsgate/Rex Shutterstock

John Crowley

Best Picture: “Brooklyn”

“It was absolutely the film I wanted to make,” Crowley said. “To watch it with American audiences and see them take ownership of it has been phenomenal.”

Courtsy of Fox Searchlight

Finola Dwyer

Best Picture: “Brooklyn”

“Early test screenings seemed to connect with audiences because it is a very universal story,” Dwyer said. “John (Crowley) is such an inspirational director and led everyone to where we are today. John was so focused and made everyone feel totally relaxed. Saoirse (Ronan) is such phenomenal actress.”

Courtesy of Fox Searchlight/Rex Shutterstock

Deniz Gamze Erguven

Foreign Language Film: “Mustang” (France)

“It’s a supreme honor. A dream come true. The subject matter is near and dear to my heart. This is the best kind of backup I could have,” he said.

Courtesy of Cohen Media/Rex Shutterstock

Nick Hornby

Adapted Screenplay: “Brooklyn”

“The novel is beautiful and muted but you can’t do that in a movie, you have to get much closer. I felt we could make a successful work of art out of something that was already a successful work of art,” Hornby said. “I could absolutely imagine (that) with a little bit of tweaking it could be something that really messed people up emotionally.”

Courtesy of Focus Features/Rex Shutterstock

Asif Kapadia

Best Documentary Feature: “Amy”

“I’m hoping what (the nomination) will do is change the view of how (Amy Winehouse) is perceived because at times she was viewed as train wreck. I felt this movie showed how witty and funny and sharp she was and now I think this has helped show how much love there was for her,” Kapadia said. “It’s so nice that she is getting so much love now. While it is sad that it is after her death, it’s still great that the perception of how people see her has changed.”

Courtesy of A24/Rex Shutterstock

Eve Stewart

Production Design: “The Danish Girl”

Tom (Hooper) has such a passion (for) telling a story. While the research can be tough for this period, it always helps to have a director who cares that much about his craft,” Stewart said.

Courtesy of Universal/Rex Shutterstock

Matt Charman

Original Screenplay: “Bridge of Spies”

“Two things came to mind when everybody came on to this project. First — I’m never going to have a film school like this again so I should really soak this up,” Charman said. “The second was that I don’t know if all these guys will ever be in the same room again so I really wanted to take in the entire filming experience.”

Courtesy of Disney/Rex Shutterstock

Paco Delgado

Costume Design: “The Danish Girl”

“The most important thing is to make the character beautiful and to have the actor become the character,” Delgado said. “We started working over a year ago trying to find the right shapes and colors and fabrics to make a believable woman out of Eddie.”

Courtesy of Universal/Rex Shutterstock

Andrew Jackson

Visual Effects: “Mad Max: Fury Road”

“The most challenging sequence was the toxic storm,” Jackson said. “That was probably the most complicated part, but ironically some of the simpler (scenes) that were difficult to get to a convincing level were shots of simulated travel.”

Courtesy of Andrew Jackson/Warner Bros.

Richard Stammers

Visual Effects: “The Martian”

“Ridley (Scott) always has a fantastic crew. It’s always fun working on projects with him. He’s a great visionary director, and bringing his ideas from vision to screen — it’s always such a fun ride getting there.”

Courtesy of 20th Century Fox/Richard Stammers

Charles Randolph

Adapted Screenplay: “The Big Short”

“What was really delightful was taking this character drama I had written and adding the farce that Adam is so good at, which really elevated the material,” Randolph. “We were in this wonderful zone.”

Courtesy of Paramount/Rex Shutterstock

Diane Warren

Original Song: “Til It Happens to You” from “The Hunting Ground”

“It feels f—ing awesome,” Warren said. “Just as good the eighth time as it did the first. There are so many songs released, and the fact that mine is among the five is amazing. I get jaded about a lot of stuff but not about that.”

Courtesy of Radius-TWC/Rex Shutterstock

Phyllis Nagy

Adapted Screenplay: “Carol”

“I got up, made a pot of coffee and rooted for everyone I knew and loved,” Nagy said. “A huge hurdle was to be true to the period, which sounds simple but when you are really being true you have to be vigilant and not add a contemporary viewpoint. That was tricky because we are all products of our time.”

Courtesy of The Weinstein Co/Rex Shutterstock

Mark Burton

Animated Feature: “Shaun the Sheep Movie”

“We cracked up some cheap champagne and cheered the nomination,” Burton said. “Filmmakers love to be the center of attention, but we don’t do this for awards, we do it for our audiences across the world. But it is nice when your peers acknowledge you for your work.”

Courtesy of Studio Canal/Rex Shutterstock

Josh Singer

Original Screenplay: “Spotlight”

As a Jewish kid growing up, you have books of Jewish heroes and Marty Baron would have been in one of those,” Singer said. “(‘Spotlight’) is this great story of this Jewish editor coming into this Catholic town, an outsider and first Jewish editor (of the Boston Globe), and on his first day says ‘We’re going after the church.’ That’s a pretty ballsy move.”

Courtesy of Open Road/Rex Shutterstock

Jonathan Herman and Andrea Berloff

Original Screenplay: “Straight Outta Compton”

“We were really excited to tackle the big issues. We’re just so thrilled that people responded and wanted to have the conversation,” Berloff said. “I’ve been a fan of N.W.A and other hip-hop since high school. I really wanted to help tell their story,” Herman said.